Emily Cat 176

The books l'm currently reading.

A few weeks ago l went to see the Grigoryan Brothers play in Dandenong. They were good and their show was based on an invitation they received to view the collection at the National Museum for their 20th anniversary. It was so clever how they created the music to go with each of the pieces they viewed. It began with Love Token, a small piece that belonged to one of the convicts. " Dear Brother when this you see remember me when l am far away". Leonard explained what that meant to them both as they had not been able to tour together during COVID. This music came together with them being apart in separate states due to the lockdowns in Australia.  These brothers were communicating with each without speaking.  As l sat there it got me thinking about siblings, siblings performing together. There can be something special about siblings performing together. Think of the beautiful harmonies of the Gibb brrothers. Think of Angus and Malcolm Young ofACDC. Think of the Beach Boys and t

  Given a preference l much prefer seeing films in a cinema. There is something special about seeing them on a big screen.  Last week l saw A Haunting in Venice. Having said how much l like seeing films in the cinema l don't actually see many films these days. I like quirky, interesting films and am not a fan of the franchise films, but, if you are, good luck to you and l hope you enjoy them. A Haunting in Venice is based, loosely, on an Agatha Christie novel called Hallowe'en Party. The setting has been changed from the book and l must say the scenery shot in Venice was stunning. I've only been to Venice once and it was grey, wet and miserable when we were there. I'm not completely sold on Kenneth Branagh as Poirot. He also directs the film. It is a clever story and although the film has changed so much of it, it is still a good story told. The cast perform well together and it was worth seeing.  3.5 Stars

  What a triumph. I love ballet and l love this ballet. Apart from one slight passage of a couple dancing out of time, and it didn't last long, this production was so good. The sets were stunning, the dancing sublime and the music soared. Odette was danced by Amber Scott and Prince Siegfried was danced by Callum Linnane. Jarryd Madden as von Rothbart was good-heartedly booed at the end. This production was performed by The Australian Ballet. I don't think l will ever tire of seeing a corps de ballet moving as one across a stage. It was the final ballet for this season and they saved the best 'til last. Tchaikovsky wrote the music for ballet and with the original choreography by Julius Reisinger it is an enduring  classic. Tchaikovsky had an unhappy life but l for one am so thankful for the beautiful  music he left the world. What a treat. australianballet.com.au If you would like to see a short video l made before we saw the show head over to the Emily Cat 176 You Tube Chan

If you are in Melbourne jump on a train and come to Frankston. Free walking tours of the street art.  This was one alleyway, there are more. www.discoverfrankston.com

Imagine being able to see and listen to the arts online.  Australian Digital Concert Hall allows you to do just that across Australia. I'm not sure if people from outside Australia can access them but it might be worth a try. Orchestral, Chamber Music, Opera and Vocal, Emerging, Baroque, Festivals and the Sydney International Piano Competition. All available on this site. I can be listening to a concert in Brisbane or Perth all from the comfort of my own home. Of course, seeing arts live is always the best but not always possible. I live in Melbourne and would love to see a show at the Sydney Opera House but that means a flight and accommodation along with a few days away from home, and l'm very busy at the moment. A monthly subscription of $50 can be purchased or buy the shows one by one. There are over 200 live broadcasts available. I'm going to purchase Melbourne Opera Macbeth. It's $34 and available to watch for a week after purchase. I've seen a few shows and a

I was in Frankston Arts Centre on Friday to see the show Goddesses of Jazz. Jennifer Vuletic and Ruth Katerelos joined together to sing the songs of some amazing women. Nina Simone, Judy Garland, Billie Holiday, Dusty Sprinfield, Edith Piaf and the late great Renee Gayer from Australia to name a few. The show consisted of the 2 singers and John Hart accompanying them on the piano. Some songs were sung together while others were performed by each singer on their own. Both of them also gave some background to each Goddess and it stuck me how sad so many of their lives were. They left us with wonderful music and after the show l listened to a few of the originals. I could hear the pain in some of those songs. Just like the ACMI Goddess Exhibition the issues female actors faced in films, this show was about the music yes, but, also about the issues female singers have faced over the decades. A very interesting show that was performed well by the Jennifer and Ruth along with John on piano.

What's in your record collection?

The Goddess Exhibition is part of the Winter Masterpiece Exhibition for 2023 What an eye opener it was. There were many wonderful dresses from films across the decades. This one is from the film Orlando. This is a dress worn by Mae West.  Mae West was always cast as the man hungry sex bomb and this is what the Exhibition was all about.  Yes there were some beautiful dresses but there was also an interview shown with Audrey Hepburn saying that once she got a bit older she was only being offered roles that wanted her to be older or younger. The Exhibition shows how Asian female actors were nearly always playing scheming machiavellian types.  Did you know that Marilyn Monroe went on strike in 1954 because of the roles she was being offered and the fact that she was being paid 70% less than her male costars. I didn't. The Exhibition shows how Hollywood treated the female actors. They had to combat ageism, sexism, being paid less than their male costars. Josephine Baker went to France t

Hi, l filmed this on Wednesday. It was a nice sunny day. Today it's like Winter again with a howling wind.  The video is noisy with cars and trams. Life in the CBD. Enjoy.

  Arts Centres Arts Centre Melboourne www.artscentremelbourne.com Frankston Arts Centre artscentre.frankston.vic.gov.au Kingston Arts Centre kingstonarts.com.au Blues Clubs Bird's Basement www.birdsbasement.com Hume Blues Club - Thornbury humebluesclub.com.au Country Music Clubs Prince Bandroom - St Kilda theprince.com.au Northcote Social Club northcotesocialclub.com Pascoe Vale RSL www.pascoevalersl.com.au The Drunken Poet - West Melbourne thedrunkenpoet.com.au Folk  Clubs Badfolk - Berwick badfolk.org Peninsula Folk Club - 1st Sunday of the month peninsulafolkclub.org.au Mission to Seafarers - Docklands missiontoseafers.com.au Jazz Clubs Paris Cat pariscat.com.au Uptown Jazz - Fitzroy uptownjazzcafe.com Theatres Fortyfive downstairs fortyfivedownstairs.com The Butterfly Club thebutterflyclub.com Regent Theatre marrinergroup.com.au Southbank Theatre mtc.com.au Athenaeum Theatre athenaeumtheatre.com.au Forum forummelbourne.com.au Red Stich Theatre - St Kilda East redstich.net The D

It took 2 buses and 2 trains to get there. If you look at my photo in front of the world famous waterfall window that fronts the National Gallery of Victoria it shows my frustration at the travel time. Was it all worth it? Oh yes, it was worth it. Pierre Bonnard (1867-1947) was a French painter, illustrator and photographer. Walking around the exhibition shows the range of skill he had in all these disciplines. I loved his painting of Paris streetscapes in the late 1800's. He painted a series of home life under the lamp, showing what happens under the glow of a pre electricity life. Bonnard lived for many years in Paris and painted the life there. Being a ballet lover l could not resist this painting. He also painted a lot of everyday still lives. Notice his use of bright colours. He also used Japanese blockwork techniques in his earlier work. I was smiling by the time l got out. Bonnard worked with theatre groups to produce flyers, was an early user of photography, did lithographs

  Arts Centres Arts Centre Melboourne www.artscentremelbourne.com Frankston Arts Centre artscentre.frankston.vic.gov.au Kingston Arts Centre kingstonarts.com.au Blues Clubs Bird's Basement www.birdsbasement.com Hume Blues Club - Thornbury humebluesclub.com.au Country Music Clubs Prince Bandroom - St Kilda theprince.com.au Northcote Social Club northcotesocialclub.com Pascoe Vale RSL www.pascoevalersl.com.au The Drunken Poet - West Melbourne thedrunkenpoet.com.au Folk  Clubs Badfolk - Berwick badfolk.org Peninsula Folk Club - 1st Sunday of the month peninsulafolkclub.org.au Mission to Seafarers - Docklands missiontoseafers.com.au Jazz Clubs Paris Cat pariscat.com.au Uptown Jazz - Fitzroy uptownjazzcafe.com Theatres Fortyfive downstairs fortyfivedownstairs.com The Butterfly Club thebutterflyclub.com Regent Theatre marrinergroup.com.au Southbank Theatre mtc.com.au Athenaeum Theatre athenaeumtheatre.com.au Forum forummelbourne.com.au Red Stich Theatre - St Kilda East redstich.net The D